Production of Functional T Cells after Treatment of Bone Marrow with Thymic Factor

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Abstract
Incubation of bone marrow cells with thymic factor obtained from bovine thymus tissue resulted in the development of cells with T lymphocyte-like function. Adoptive transfer of these cells into lethally irradiated syngeneic mice followed by antigen stimulation with sheep erythrocytes provided a system for testing the ability of the thymic factor-treated cells to induce B cells to become antibody-forming cells. The former were capable of substituting for thymocytes since antibody-forming cells were detected in the recipient spleens upon assay for hemolytic plaques 9 days after transplantation. Limiting dilution experiments in which graded numbers of thymic factor-treated marrow cells were transferred along with a nonrestricted supply of normal bone marrow cells and antigen indicated that the critical number of thymic factor-treated marrow cells needed to synergize with B cells in the production of an anti-SRBC response was contained in 3 × 105 marrow cells. Quantitative and qualitative differences between the thymic factor-treated cells and thymus-derived T cells are discussed.